Internet of Things Archives

Internet of Things

IT meets OT as Belden buys TripWire for $710m

December 10, 2014 Paul Roberts

In a move that heralded the growing convergence of information security and IT operations, Belden, a maker of industrial networking equipment, said it is acquiring Tripwire, an IT security services firm for $710 in cash. The announcement, on Tuesday, underscores the degree to which traditional IT security focused on securing enterprise networks is becoming part and parcel of the services that industrial firms wish to offer to their customers in heavy industries and critical infrastructure. [Read more Security Ledger reporting on Internet of Things and IT-OT convergence.] In a published statement, Belden said that, together, the companies will “work to deliver the next generation of cybersecurity solutions that can be deployed across enterprise, industrial, and broadcast markets.” John Stroup, President and CEO of Belden, said TripWire will extend his company’s capabilities. The two companies had previously worked together to improve critical infrastructure cybersecurity in manufacturing organizations, tailoring cyber security solutions for specific customer […]

Security Ledger Talks Car Hacking on NPR’s AirTalk

December 9, 2014 Paul Roberts

Just a note to our readers that you can listen to a great conversation on hacking automobiles on Airtalk, a National Public Radio call-in talk show that airs on WPCC, Pasadena, California. Interestingly: the other expert guest on the show was none other than Chris Valasek of IOActive, one of the most recognized researchers on security vulnerabilities in modern automobiles. [Read more Security Ledger coverage of Chris Valasek’s research here.] Chris and I spoke with host Larry Mantle about the current state of affairs with regard to car hacking: what is possible (theoretically), what is practical and what are car makers doing about it. Check out our conversation via KPCC’s web site: The next frontier for computer hackers: Your car | AirTalk | 89.3 KPCC.

Big Data, Security Drive Dell In Post-PC Future

December 9, 2014 Paul Roberts

If you consider how the Internet of Things is transforming the technology industry, one of the most interesting and thought-provoking areas to pay attention to is what we might consider technology “majors” – firms like HP and IBM and Cisco that made their mark (and their hundreds of billions) serving the needs of an earlier generation of technology consumers. How these established technology firms are pivoting to address the myriad challenges posed by the “Internet of Things” tells us a lot about how the IoT market is likely to shake out for consumers and – more pressingly- the enterprise.

2015 is Apparently Not The Year for IoT Standards

December 8, 2014 Paul Roberts

CIO has an end-of-year, “crystal ball” interview with Gartner analyst Kristian Streenstrup and Forrester analyst Tim Sheedy on how the Internet of Things is likely to mature and change in 2015. Her high-level thoughts: Applications and use cases for the IoT continue to grow, but progress towards cross-industry standards will not keep pace. (We wrote about whether its already too late to have real standardization in IoT here.) To the extent that there is movement towards IoT standards, it will come within specific industry verticals, with the backing of major firms (like GE) or at the tip of a regulator’s pencil, Streenstrup says. Consumer adoption of IoT will be “slow,” argues Forrester’s Sheedy. Why? No surprise – poor interaction and connectivity. “It’s still a one app- one device model,” Sheedy says, underscoring a problem that gets back to the standards question. Read more via Where is the Internet of Things heading in 2015? […]

Cyber Security and IoT: Fundamentals Matter

December 4, 2014 Marc Blackmer

I really struggled to come up with a clever analogy to start this post. In doing so I realized that this exercise was itself, the exact problem I was trying to describe. So much conversation about cyber security, especially cyber security for the Internet of Things (IoT), focuses on the sexy, the complicated, the one-in-a-million. In doing so, we ignore the most common threats and basic attacks. I would like to argue that if we are to effectively defend ourselves in this new IoT world, we cannot ignore the fundamentals of security. But let’s be honest: the basics are boring. I know that. Many of the practices that are most important are also the ones we’ve heard about before. As we look at them: there isn’t anything new there. That’s true – but I take that as proof that they are sound practices, worthy of keeping top-of-mind, rather than old knowledge that can be discarded. Here’s […]